


Califurnia Dreaming

by sirtalen



Series: Judy and Nick's Tales [4]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Father Figures, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Murder, Murder Mystery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-05-19 21:07:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 7,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14881215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sirtalen/pseuds/sirtalen
Summary: Nick's relationship with his absent father comes to light, along with a body dredged up from Zootopia's harbor.





	1. Chapter 1

The blood red evening sun was just edging towards the horizon when the call came over the radio.

 

 _"Zoo Adam-12,"_ Clawhauser said, " _10-54, body located in Zootopia Harbor. It was pulled up by the dredging operation._ _Forensics unit is on the way to meet you."_

 

"10-54 acknowledged," Judy replied, picking up their car's radio mike. "Any more details?"

 

" _It appears to be a small mammal. No further details at this time."_

 

"Zoo Adam-12, on our way." Judy hit the lights and turned onto the main road leading to Port Zootopia. They reached the industrial docks about ten minutes later, just as a large dredging vessel, built to dig into the harbor bottom and deepen it to allow larger vessels to visit the great city, slowly edged into its dock.

 

"Wonder what they found," Nick said aloud, as he slipped on his mirrored aviators. Judy blinked as the sunset reflected off his glasses, blinding her for a second.

 

"Only one way to find out," Judy replied. As they approached the dredger, a worried looking beaver wearing a captain's cap on his head clambered down the gangplank towards them.

 

"Officers," he greeted, shaking paws with them briefly.. "I'm glad you came. I'm Captain Beaverton. We were just finishing up for the day when we spotted it in the sand we dredged up."

 

"What did you find?" Nick asked, as they followed him up the steel gangplank.

 

"The dredging unit pulled up a duffle bag. Nothing odd about that. We pull up garbage all the time. Usually we just let it sit in the sand until it can be filtered out when the sand is put in the landfill. But then we spotted the bones that were spilling out."

 

Beaverton led them to the rear of the dredger, where a large open cargo bay was filled to the top with wet sand. Sitting off to one side was a circle of crewfurs, surrounding a ripped open green duffle bag. A pile of bones and old, waterlogged fabric spilled out from it, including the victim's skull.

 

"Body in a bag," Nick said, kneeling down and lifting up his sunglasses. He squinted, looking closer. "Looks like the bag was waterproofed, which accounts for some of the victim's clothing surviving. It'll make it harder to identify how long ago it happened though." He turned his attention towards the remains. "Victim was a vulpine obviously, going by the shape of the skull."

 

"How do you think he died?" Judy asked. She rewarded for that with an _Are you kidding me?_ look from Nick.

 

"Mob hit, I'm guessing." He pulled a pen from his shirt pocket, waving it at the skull. "I think the large hole in the back of the vic's head is diagnos… tic..." Nick's voice trailed off, and he went down on his knees, heedless of the wet and dirty sand soiling the pants of his uniform, staring hard at the bones in the sand.

 

"Nick, what's the matter?" Judy demanded. When he reached down towards the remains, she made to grab his paw. "Hey! Don't touch that! You can't disturb the scene before Forensics looks at it."

 

"I'm not… I mean, just a little." Nick poked at the tattered remnants of what looked like a necktie, pushing away a little bit of sand that covered a tarnished golden tie clip. "Three diamonds," he muttered, green eyes wide, ears flat against his head, his tail completely fluffed out in obvious shock.

 

"What's wrong, Nick?" Judy repeated, kneeling down beside him.

 

"The tie clip. Gold tie clip, one big diamond in the middle, two on either side of it," he said, pointing them out to her. "I recognize it."

 

She put a paw on his shoulder to steady him. "Who does it belong to?"

 

Nick looked over to Judy, swallowing hard.

 

"My dad."


	2. Chapter 2

There were Procedures to be followed, and Judy followed them. Tape off the immediate area around the remains. Make sure no unauthorized civilians entered the area and risk contaminating the evidence. Deal with any press, which right now was limited to a ZNN news van and its cameramammal, a zebra busying themselves taking establishing shots of the dredger while waiting for a reporter to show up.

 

Occasionally she looked over at Nick, who ostensibly was guarding the gangplank to keep civilians out. Mostly he was just leaning against a steel bollard taller than he was, the proverbial thousand mile stare on his face. 

 

Another van drove carefully up, disgorging three sloths in blue nylon windbreakers, with ZPD FORENSICS in wide yellow letters on their backs. They made their way leisurely towards the boat, equipment bags slung over their arms. The lead sloth, looking rather Goth with a silver ring in her nose and wearing a studded collar, gave them a cheerful wave.

 

"Is this… the ship.. where the body… was found?" she asked.

 

"Yes, right in the taped off area," Judy answered. She pointed towards the mound of sand, the remains circled by yellow warning tape mounted on thin poles she and Nick had retrieved from the trunk of their cruiser, illuminated by the ship's floodlights. "Need me to lead you to it?"

 

"No… we're good… thanks." The sloth turned towards Nick. "We were told… you made… an initial… identification… of the… victim?"

 

"Possibly," Nick admitted, the first words he'd spoken since he'd taken up watch by the gangplank. "I identified a piece of jewelry similar to… That may have belonged to…" He went silent, head bowed and ears flopped down. After a moment, he took in a deep breath and continued, "That may have belonged to Nolan Ceaser Wilde, a Zootopian citizen who disappeared in early March 1990."

 

"Okay... thanks. We'll get.... right on… it." 

 

The sloths headed up the gangway. Judy watched them for a moment to make sure they didn't need her help, and then laid a paw on Nick's elbow gently. "You call your mother yet, Nick?" she asked.

 

"Can't, at least not until the DA's office gives me the clear," he said flatly. "Technically she's a suspect. Technically  _ I'm  _ a suspect."

 

Judy frowned, doing the math in her head. "You were  _ six,  _ Nick."

 

He shrugged. "Still."

 

"Nick…" Judy tried to think of something else to say. Asking  _ Are you okay? _ would be insultingly stupid.  _ Do you think it's really him? _ far too fraught.

 

As reading her mind, Nick sighed and turned to face her. "I know you want to help me, believe me I know. But..." He shrugged helplessly.

 

"Yeah." Judy nodded in understanding. Her attention turned back towards the pier, where a sedan was pulling up. A familiar snow leopard in a smart pantsuit emerged, heading over to the camera truck. "Fabienne Growley is here," she noted. "She'll be asking questions for the Ten o'Clock News. Do you want me to handle it?"

 

"Please," Nick said, looking relieved. His paw reached out and touched her shoulder. Though his face remained impassive, he had a pleading look in his green eyes. "Judy, if that's really my dad I  _ can't  _ get involved with this. I broke the rules once after you were mauled by Volkov's goon and got a six month suspension. I do it again, Chief Bogo will rip the badge off my uniform himself."

 

"I know," Judy replied. She took both his paws in hers, squeezing them tight. "Whatever I can find out, I'll pass along."

 

"No."

 

Judy blinked in confusion. "No?"

 

"This situation isn't worth you risking your career either." His lips rose to his usual lopsided smile. "So be a good bunny and follow procedure, okay?"

 

"But it might be your  _ father _ ," she pointed out.

 

The smile dipped back down, disappearing. "That's why it's not worth it," Nick said. He let go of her paws and shooed her towards the approaching Growley. "Go do the Public Relations thing. We'll talk later."

 

Judy glared at him briefly before turning away. "We'd better," she warned.


	3. Chapter 3

_ "Tonight on the Ten O'Clock News: Friction between Tundra Town and Sahara Square over tax increases to cover upgrades to Zootopia's environmental control system, arguments in court over classifying the Night Howler poisoning victims' legal battles as a single class action lawsuit, and finally a quarter-century old missing mammal case is unexpectedly reopened as a body is finally found…" _

 

Chief Bogo muted the sound on his phone, adjusting his glasses briefly as he looked down at the file that had been pulled from Cold Case drawer. Back in 1990 the ZPD's filing system hadn't been fully computerized yet, and in that era a missing predator report would have been low on the priority list of cases anyway. There wasn't much to see. Just a photo and basic biographical information of the victim, along with the Missing Mammal report filed by Nolan Wilde's wife, reporting that he'd been missing for two days. Finally there was a typed summary of the investigating officer's questioning of the neighbors, ending with the conclusion that Nolan C. Wilde had probably skipped town ahead of defaulting on some questionable loans by some equally questionable lenders.

 

He looked up again at a soft knock at his door. "Come in!" he called out. Officer Hopp's ears poked in, followed by the rest of her, violet eyes looking up at him tentatively.

 

"You wanted to see me, Chief?" she asked softly.

 

"Sit down, Hopps," Bogo ordered. When she'd climbed up and settled herself on chair sized for an elephant, he continued, "Where's Wilde?"

 

"Giving blood and fur samples to Forensics for DNA testing," Hopps reported. "Are you going to want to talk to him?"

 

"Eventually." Bogo tapped the manilla folder in front of him. "This is not a formal interview, Hopps. But I did want to speak to you briefly in private, off the record."

 

"Sir?" Hopps asked, nose twitching in curiosity.

 

Bogo steepled his fingers, leaning over the desk to look at her. "How did Wilde react when he made the initial identification of the remains?"

 

The little bunny shrugged. "He was in shock. Once he identified the tie clip his tail floofed and his ears went back, like he'd… well, seen a ghost. He kept pretty quiet after that. Given the probability that he was related to the victim, Nick let me handle cordoning off the scene and contacting Central to bring in Forensics."

 

Bogo nodded. "Did he speak to you at all about the upcoming investigation?"

 

"Yes, sir," Hopps said with a nod. "He understands that he can't be part of it, especially given his… er…  _ actions  _ during the Volkov case. He was very clear on that." Her nose twitched again briefly. Then she let out a soft sigh and added, "I actually offered to pass along any information that was discovered to him instead, to keep him informed."

 

Bogo snorted briefly, " _ Hmm _ . What was his reaction?"

 

"He refused, sir," Hopps answered immediately. "Nick said it wasn't worth risking my career over it."

 

"You're damned right it isn't," Bogo agreed with a growl. He tapped his desk briefly with his hoof. "Under the circumstances, given Wilde is your partner and the personal nature of the discovery, I'll let your offer to breach procedures pass.  _ This time _ ."

 

"Thank you, sir," Hopps said, looking relieved. "Is that why you called me in here?"

 

"Not entirely." Bogo leaned back in his chair, listening to the polished oak wood creak. "How informed are you on Zootopia's history during the early 90's, Officer Hopps?"

 

"Er, I was born in '92, Chief," she hedged. "I'll admit it wasn't the focus of my studies at the Academy."

 

_ "Hmph.  _ I suggest you read up. The short version is, if you thought Predator/Prey relations were bad when you joined the ZPD, you never saw it during the 80's and 90's. I doubt that the missing mammals related to the Night Howler case would have even have been investigated. Not seriously at least." Bogo frowned briefly and continued. "It was especially bad around late 89 to early Spring 1990. At the time, the Zootopia mob scene was under the control of a Russian polar bear named Koslov. He'd had all of Zootopia's organized crime under his thumb, until Mr. Big arrived. That winter to early spring saw the worst mob war in the city's history. Dozens of citizens, predator and prey, just disappeared. There were even rumors that," Bogo paused and grimaced, "rumors that some had even been  _ eaten. _ "

 

" _ Eaten _ ?" Hopps repeated, looking ill.

 

"Only rumors, nothing was ever proven." Bogo rubbed his snout briefly. "My point is that the victim appears to be the victim of a mob hit. Shot to the back of the head, dumped in the middle of the harbor, and if it does turn out to be Wilde's father, the profile is that of someone who got on the wrong side of Koslov and Mr. Big's war and paid the price for it."

 

"So, what does this have to do with me?" Hopps asked, ears flattening to her head, not quite managing to sound innocent.

 

Bogo's glare was enough to make the young bunny officer shrink even smaller into her oversized chair. "I am aware of your 'special relationship' with Mr. Big's family. You're his granddaughter's godmother. He trusts you."

 

"Sir, I have never,  _ ever  _ done anything to support any illegal…" Hopps began to protest. 

 

Bogo held up a hoof to quiet her. "I'm not saying that you have," he interrupted. "But you have access to Mr. Big's ear that other mammals in my department don't. You have a better chance than anyone to find out the truth of the matter."

 

"Yes, Chief." She shrugged again. "I can ask him. I don't know if he'll answer though." Hopps worried her lip between her incisors briefly. "It's just… What if it turns out that the victim  _ was  _ murdered by his order?"

 

"Then it becomes my problem, not yours," he informed her. He drew in a deep breath. "I don't like Mr. Big. I don't like finding bodies 'iced' in the harbor, even if they usually are scum of the earth. But I remember what this city was like when that bastard Koslov was in charge, and believe me when I say Mr. Big is definitely the lesser of two evils. That said, if it turns out he is responsible for the murder of a family member of one of my brother officers, I  _ will  _ bring him down for it. Feel free to inform him of that."

 

Hopps stood up on her chair and gave him a formal salute. "Understood, sir."


	4. Chapter 4

Judy found Nick sitting in a waiting room outside the forensics lab, sipping a cup of coffee, his uniform tie undone and collar unbuttoned, looking exhausted. "It's almost eleven, Nick. You should go home," she scolded.

 

"Same goes for you," he pointed out. "You're not on this case."

 

"Neither are you," Judy countered.

 

He shrugged, took a sip of his coffee, and said, "My mom is on her way over. To try and..." Nick didn't finish the sentence.

 

She nodded. "Alright. Do you want me to be here… or leave you alone…?"

"Yes," he answered ambiguously.

 

_ Stay here, _ Judy interpreted. She sat beside him, saying nothing. When she offered her paw to him however, he took it in a tight grip.

 

"You haven't asked," Nick said after a few moments.

 

"About your father?" she ventured. At his nod, Judy went on, "We've known each other for almost two years, Nick. In all that time you never said anything about him, and neither has your mom. I figured it wasn't my business."

 

One corner of Nick's lip twitched up briefly, the half smile disappearing again just as quickly. "Since when have you ever minded your own business, Carrots?" 

 

"I  _ learned _ ," Judy protested. That provoked a chuckle out of the fox, which suddenly warped into a deep heaving sob, stopping abruptly as Nick closed his eyes tight, his grip on Judy's paw growing almost painful. For a moment she thought to demand that he let loose his tears, let out the pain, but she knew he wouldn't. Not in this public place. Maybe later, when they were alone, and could face their naked selves in the dark.

 

The lobby door opened, admitting a tired looking vixen in her mid-fifties, dressed in a long black skirt, a green turtleneck sweater, with a large silver pendant hanging from a long chain around her neck. Mrs. Wilde turned and spotted Judy and Nick, rushing over to hug Nick hard as he stood up to meet her. "Hello, Nick," she said, keeping hold of his shoulders as she looked him up and down. "How are you, sweetheart?"

 

"I'm okay," he lied. "How are you doing?"

 

"I don't know," she admitted. She closed her eyes briefly, shaking her head. "Do you think it's really him?"

 

"I saw that tie clip that had been a gift from…" Nick's eyes flicked over to Judy briefly, and he edited whatever he had been about to say to, "...his business associates. If there's another fox out there with the same clip, I don't know who it could be."

 

Mrs. Wilde nodded, her tail drooping to the floor, eyes closing briefly as her forehead creased in pain. "Lamb of God forgive me, I wish we hadn't found him. Why couldn't he have just stayed  _ gone _ , instead of showing up in our lives again?"

 

"Still might not be him," Nick pointed out. Mrs. Wilde gave him a  _ Look _ worthy of her son's more cynical moments, and he shrugged. "I'm a cop, Mom. I have to keep all the possibilities open."

 

"It was so long ago, I'm not sure we can find his dental records," Mrs. Wilde said. "Are they going to do a DNA test?"   
  


"Yeah." Nick held up his arm to show the band-aid covering a small patch of fur that had been shaved off to take a blood sample. "It's going to be about a month before we hear anything about whether they found a match or not. It's not instantaneous like you see on CSI-Z, especially for something from the Cold Case files."

 

"He always did drag his feet about the important things," Mrs. Wilde noted. Nick nodded, helping his mother sit down while he got her a cup of coffee.

 

Judy, watching this quietly, tried to make sense of Nick and Mrs. Wilde's interactions. There was pain between them over the discovery to be sure, but somehow it didn't seem to be the  _ right  _ kind of pain. Not a scar of grief, cut open to bleed again, but a weary frustration at having  _ deal with  _ the situation. More telling was the way Mrs. Wilde had talked about Nolan Wilde. Always "him" or "he", never "my husband" or "your father."  _ Not family. _

 

A sloth came out of from the doorway leading to the morgue. "Officer Wilde… Mrs. Wilde?" he said slowly. "Please come… this way… so you can… try… to identify… the remains."

 

"Want me to wait for you, Nick?" Judy asked.

 

He shook his head. "No telling how long this will take. Go get some sleep and let us nocturnals take care of business, Judy."

 

She nodded briefly, then stepped forward, pressing her palm to his cheek and whispering fiercely, "We need to  _ talk _ ."

 

Old Nick, the one she'd known as a civilian, only reluctantly pulled from his defensive cynicism during the desperate hours of the Night Howler case, would have evaded that demand. Officer Wilde looked down at her and simply said, "Yeah, but not here. When I get home, okay?"

 

"Okay," Judy agreed, stepping back. "Take care, Nick, Mrs. Wilde."

 

"Thank you, dear," Mrs. Wilde said, then she followed Nick and the sloth into the morgue, to deal with a past neither of the foxes looked prepared to face.

 

_ Who was Nolan Wilde? _ Judy could only wonder.


	5. Chapter 5

The clock by Judy's bedside said it was past 3 AM by the time Nick unlocked the door to the apartment they shared. Her ears twitched up at the noise but she remained still, waiting as she listened to Nick locking his service pistol in their gun safe, then entered their bedroom to strip out of his uniform and crawl into bed with her. His long, warm body wrapped around her, as he lay down nose to tail, his familiar scent tickling her nose. Judy's arms automatically wrapped around his brush as she buried her face in his fur, sighing in pleasure.

 

"You awake, Judy?" Nick asked softly.

 

"Yes. Is now a good time to talk?" she asked.

 

"No," he replied. Nick's body shifted, curling up behind her, his left arm draping itself over her chest as he rested his chin between her ears. "But there's never going to be a good time, so it may as well be now." His paw moved down to stroke her belly fur, and she reached over to grip it again. "What do you want to know?"

 

"You and your mom spoke together about Nolan for about five minutes as I listened. Both of you managed to go through that whole conversation without using the words 'husband' or 'father'. That and you were both obviously upset, but not… not  _ grieving _ . You both just sounded tired. Why?"

 

She felt Nick shrug in the dark. "He died over thirty years ago. Ancient history. I finished grieving when I was six."

 

"That's Nick the Hustler talking," Judy said firmly. "You aren't that fox anymore. Please don't lie to me, Nick. I'm not going to judge, but I need to know the truth, especially if I end up working on the investigation."

 

There was a long silence. Then Nick let out a deep sigh, snuggling in a little tighter against her back. "You're right." He reached up, rubbing his eyes briefly as he gathered his thoughts. "Mom and Nolan… my dad… met in community college when they were both twenty. Mom was getting her accounting degree, and Dad was taking a course in sewing."

 

"Sewing?" Judy asked in surprise.

 

"He wanted to be a tailor," Nick explained. "Make suits for tods, rams, Alpha wolves, y'know." His voice deepened for a moment. 'You want to be a success, you have to look like a success' he used to say. Mom said he was good at it. He even made her wedding dress for her."

 

"Where did he work?"

 

"He didn't want to work for anybody. Didn't want to be just another low paid pieceworker making shirts on a sewing machine at home. He wanted his own shop, where he could be the boss."

 

"When he was twenty?" Judy asked, unable to suppress the dubiousness in her tone.

 

"Yeah," Nick said. "Needless to say, getting a loan to open his own shop wasn't exactly easy. What with being a cocky twenty year old kid, no business experience, and a sneaky fox to boot. It's not like he was in a sheep or bunny neighborhood with an established co-op with easy credit to go to. He must have gotten a hundred bank doors slammed in his face."

 

Judy nodded in understanding. The bunny co-op that had loaned her parents the money to start their farm, and support them during the occasional lean years, had been an integral part of Bunnyburrow's community for as long as anyone could remember. A fox in Zootopia, especially thirty years ago, wouldn't have been so lucky. "So, no business?"

 

"Oh, nothing so petty as reality was going to stop him," Nick continued. "Besides, by that point he'd married Mom, and soon she was pregnant. He  _ had  _ to get his business started."

 

She felt her nose wiggle. "I don't like the way this is going, Nick."

 

"If that nose twitch means you smell dirty money, you're not wrong. Dad got the loan from the only person who would give him the time of day, Koslov."

 

"So that's when things went wrong?" she asked.

 

"No, actually. According to Mom that's when things started going right. He got his business. Nice little shop on the edge of Tundra Town.  _ Wilde's Tailoring, All Species and Sizes _ . And a steady supply of clientele who liked nice suits from somebody who didn't ask why they always paid cash." NIck smiled. "And he was good. Oh, he was. When it came to suits, Dad was an  _ artist.  _ Mouse, polar bear, antelope or giraffe, he could put a suit together for them that would make any mammal look like they  _ owned  _ this town."

 

Judy nodded. "And then?"

 

"Then… one fine day… Mr. Big came to town. Little arctic shrew with a funny Italian accent," Nick said. "He wanted a slice of Koslov's territory. Koslov laughed in his face and said he'd stomp Mr. Big flat."

 

"That's when the war started?"

 

Nick nodded. "Nobody was laughing anymore when a half dozen of Koslov's goons were found floating in the middle Zootopia Harbor, encased in blocks of ice. Mr. Big may be a little shrew, but he's ruthless when he wants something, and Koslov had made too many enemies. He'd gotten sloppy, leaned too hard on the wrong people. The chief of the ZPD, before Bogo came to town, suddenly forgot that he was on Koslov's payroll, and turned a blind eye when the bear's businesses started to burn to the ground.

 

"Koslov's resources were being squeezed, and he needed lots of money to bring more muscle into town. So he ramped up his drug operations. But with his usual distribution centers being burned to the ground, he needed a new place to pass around his coke, meth, and catnip."

 

"He started using your dad's shop?" Judy asked, outraged.

 

"Yep. Come in to get your suit adjusted, come out with your jacket pocket full of dime bags."

 

She shook her head. "I guess if he was paying off his loan to Koslov, your dad didn't have any choice."

 

"You'd think that," Nick said mildly. Judy shifted around to look the fox in his face, seeing the half-lidded eyes and snarky smile of Nick the Hustler looking back at him. The face Nick had worn to hide his pain to the world.

 

"He did have a choice?" she asked carefully.

 

"Maybe he did, maybe he didn't," Nick said. "But the point is that Dad didn't  _ care _ . He  _ liked  _ making suits for Koslov's Mob. Remember, he was a fox in Zootopia. He was never going to get respect from legitimate citizens, so he got it from the crooks. And he got a nice little bonus from Koslov to ease his conscience."

 

"Did your mom know all of this?"

 

Nick nodded. "Some at first. Dad didn't exactly explain where the loan had come from, but she wasn't stupid. She could figure who most of his clientele was working for. But she was a fox in Zootopia too, so she figured this was their best option, lousy as it was." He rubbed his lips briefly.  "That changed when she found out about the drugs. Mom could swallow Dad making suits for the Mob. Letting Koslov use the shop as his candy store was going too far. She and Dad had the biggest fight I'd ever seen them have that night. Then she kicked him out on his tail and told him not to come back home until he convinced Koslov to move his drug distribution somewhere else."

 

Judy frowned. "What happened then?"

 

Nick closed his eyes, as if in pain. "He left. He just… left. The last thing he said to her was that if she was going to be so snotty about who he did business with, he'd just move to Califurnia and start over without either of us. That he had built something here in Zootopia and she was just spitting on everything he'd done." He sighed. "That was last either of us ever saw of him."

 

"What happened to his shop?"

 

"Burned to the ground the next evening, with three of Koslov's boys inside. Two weeks later Koslov was dead and Mr. Big was in control of the city. We never heard from Dad again. Now we know why." Nich let out a long sigh.

 

"Nick, do you think Mr. Big had your father killed?" Judy asked, feeling her heart sink.

 

"Well, that's the real question of the day, isn't it Carrots?" Nick said. "God knows I don't dare ask him."

 

"Why not?" she demanded.

 

"What the hell would I do if he said yes?"


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning was Judy's day off, thank goodness. She woke up with Nick still wrapped around her, sleeping the sleep of the emotionally exhausted. Pulling herself carefully from his body nest, she slipped on her jeans and a flannel shirt, and then wrote a note and set it on the dresser, explaining she was going out for coffee.

She and Nick had moved in together about month after Judy had returned to duty, after surviving a mauling courtesy of Volkov, an insane Arctic Fox who had tried to take over Zootopia's underworld scene much the way Mr. Big had decades ago. Only this time she'd been backed up by a small army of pred supremacists, and a new and extremely dangerous formulation of Night Howler that made the victim more than willing to hunt and eat their victims, but left their intelligence intact.

In the months following, as Judy gradually recovered, Nick had helped her regain her strength and get ready to retake the physical exams to go back on street duty. Along the way they'd become lovers, in an easy going relationship that wasn't merely lust, but seemed more like a deep extension of their friendship. Moving in together had just been the next logical step. The fact that it got them out of the Pangolin Arms had only been a bonus.

She'd picked up her and Nick's usual from Snarlbucks, when she found a familiar looking polar bear waiting outside the coffee shop. Raymond, one of Mr. Big's henchmammals, was conspicuous in his usual dark suit this Saturday morning.

"Good morning, Raymond," Judy greeted.

"Good morning, Officer Judy," Raymond greeted her in turn with his deep Slavic accent, ducking his head to her respectfully. Curiously, Mr. Big's white limo was nowhere to be seen. "How is Officer Nicholas?" he asked.

"Still sleeping," she answered. "Does Mr. Big want to speak to him?"

"No," Raymond said. He rubbed the back his neck briefly, looking away from her as he answered, "I come this morning on my own."

Judy felt her ears rise to full attention. She'd never really seen the fifty or so year old bear outside of the times when he attended to Mr. Big's orders. She'd gotten the vague impression of a polar bear that was deeply loyal to the little shrew, but not a person with a deep interior life. "Sit down," she said, hopping up onto a nearby bench. The reinforced iron and an concrete bench creaked slightly as Raymond settled down on it. "What's up?" she asked.

"I wished to speak to you, about the body that was found last night," he said slowly, as if carefully measuring his words before opening his muzzle. "I should speak to Officer Nicholas on this matter, but… But is difficult subject. Very difficult."

"I can understand that," Judy said, mentally noting to tell Chief Bogo there was a leak, probably in Mr. Big's pay, on the force. "Take your time. I'm listening."

" _Spasibo_ ," he replied in Russian. "You must understand, I… I am not a good mammal. I do what I am told. I do not question. For most part, mostly, that is enough. But… sometimes… it is not enough."

"Okay," Judy said carefully, wondering where this was going.

"When I growing up, I was not smart. School was… frustrating. Always felt like big dumb bear. And Russia… was not a good place. Not enough food, not enough… of everything… and what there was, was bad," he continued. "But then Wall came down. Premier Gorbachomp calls for _Perestroika_ , openness. My papa say we move to Zootopia, make new life. We come here. But things are still hard. I am still dumb, and not even know language very well, so am even dumber." As he spoke Raymond seemed to shrink into himself, shoulders hunching, elbows resting on his knees. "And then Papa die, and I cannot stay in school. Must get job. But what job is there for a big dumb bear?

"But then I meet weasel. He say 'You look like strong young mammal. I get you job.' So he takes me to Mr. Koslov. And Koslov say 'You work for me. I give you money. Enough money for you and your mama, so you can take care of her.' And I feel good, because I now can provide for her.

"And job is okay. I collect money from Mr. Koslov's businesses. I break legs of business owners who will not pay. I get myself a nice suit, so when I go to businesses I look important and they not argue so much. Mr. Wilde, Officer Nicholas' father, made me that suit. Very first suit I buy on my own. Was good suit. I look grown up. I look like Papa want me to look; _important, respected_.

"So I do good work for Mr. Koslov. He is happy, give me more important jobs, more money. Take packages from place to place. Take girls… from place to place." The mournful look on Raymond's face deepened. "Sometimes girls get hurt. Take them to doctor to... get fixed up… afterward. I feel bad for girls. After while I am thinking I do not like working for Mr. Koslov now. But I still dumb bear. Got nowhere else to go. And mammals who try to leave Mr. Koslov, they end up dead.

"But then new mammal come to town, Mr. Big. Funny little shrew. Tells Koslov that he will be the boss in town now. Mr. Koslov laughs. Soon Mr. Koslov's boys start turning up dead, and then Mr. Koslov not laugh so much."

"Nick and Chief Bogo told me about that," Judy interjected. "They said it was a pretty bad war."

"Very bad," Raymond agreed. "Lots of Koslov's boys die, some of them my friends. I start moving lots of packages for Mr. Koslov. Lots of drugs. Then one day I am told that we will be moving drugs to Mr. Wilde's place. Mr. Wilde says nothing when we bring drugs to his shop. But I see he is not happy either. He is scared of Koslov, as I am scared of Koslov."

Judy frowned. "Nick said his dad didn't care."

"Nicholas very young then. I think he not understand." Raymond hunched down a little further. "War start getting more bad. I am thinking Mr. Koslov not going to win it. Don't know what to do.

"Then one morning a little mouse comes up to me. Asks me if I work for Mr. Koslov. I say yes. Very small fellow. I lift up my foot, and I think if step on him, I make Mr. Koslov happy. But then mouse asks if I am happy moving drugs and girls, and I stop. Put foot down. Listen. He tell me if I come work for Mr. Big, there would be no more drugs, no more girls getting hurt. I ask him how do I know Mr. Big won't kill me. Mouse say Mr. Big _would_ kill me, if I stay with Koslov. So then I start to think that working for Mr. Big might be a very good thing. But first I must prove myself.

"Mouse says Mr. Big wants a shop burned down, one that has lots of Koslov's drugs. I know which one he meant."

"Nolan Wilde's tailoring shop?" Judy asked.

" _Da_ ," Raymond agreed. "Two of Mr. Big's mammals, a polar bear and a wolf, come with me. We toss in Molotov cocktails and block the doors. All the drug go up in flames, along with three of Mr. Koslov's mammals. Very bad mammals. I think that this would prove myself to Mr. Big, but job not done."

"The wolf, he hands me a bag for gym clothes. It smells of blood. He say to me, 'Get rid of this for Mr. Big, and you will be one of us.' I know what to do. I take off the good suit that Mr. Wilde made for me, and I swim out to the middle of the harbor. No problem for big polar bear like me. I drop the bag and let it sink, so no one would find it. I did not look… to see... what was inside. I come back, and now I am one of Mr. Big's mammals."

"I see," Judy replied, when she was sure Raymond had finished. Because what else could she say? Then she asked, "Why tell me this now?"

"Because that bag was found. Because I am becoming old bear. Because…" Raymond sighed, a great tired rush of air. "Because I have wife that I love, and two boys that are now grown, both so much smarter than their dumb papa. And I would like to be able to look them in the face, and say, 'Today, for the first time in his life, your papa did the right thing.'"

"Do you think Mr. Big had Nolan Wilde killed?" she asked.

The polar bear shook his head slowly. "I do not know. All I know is the wolf who worked for Mr. Big gave me the bag, and it smelled of blood."

"Would you be willing to testify to that in a court of law?"

Raymond was silent for a long moment. Then he finally said, "Yes."

"Thank you," Judy patted his paw, then grabbed the now lukewarm coffee cups and hopped down, telling him, "You'd better get back to Mr. Big now."

" _Da._ Thank you, Officer Judy. Thank you." Then the tired old bear heaved himself up off the bench and walked away.


	7. Chapter 7

Judy didn't mention her conversation with Raymond to Nick after he woke up. She told herself that it was a private conversation with a potential suspect, and Nick wasn't supposed to be involved with the case. Also it wasn't like he needed to stress out more about this.

 

So they spent the weekend in, binging on the latest season of  _ Vulptron _ , playing video games, and indulging in grooming. Since their relationship had become physical in the past few months, Judy had found it was easy to remove Nick's spine just with a tail brush and some stroking. Foxes might not be pack mammals like bunnies, but they still craved touch. Judy suspected that Nick had been fairly starved for it during his hustling years. He could spend hours curled up with her on the couch, not even doing anything, just enjoying the warmth of her body and her comforting scent.

 

The matter of the body found in the harbor had remained a taboo subject for conversation, by mutual agreement. Judy was careful not to even turn on the news, or check any of her usual websites. Thankfully any interview requests would have to go through the ZPD's press office, since Nick was a police officer, so they were spared that.

 

Monday morning, as they both got dressed in their uniforms, she dared to ask, "Are you sure you want to go in, Nick? Given the circumstances, Bogo would probably let you have some personal leave time."

 

"And just lay around the apartment, thinking?" Nick responded. He smiled his hustler smile at her. " I'd rather keep busy, thanks. I think past history has shown that leaving Officer Wilde to his own devices is a bad idea." His smile grew more genuine. "And I'd rather be busy with you."

 

Judy smiled back, and they caught the Number Seven bus to Savannah Central. When they entered the lobby of Station One, Clawhouser looked up from his morning donut and gave them a little wave. "Hey guys, how are you doing?" he greeted. His usual cheerful expression grew more serious, "Are you okay, Nick?"

 

"I'm okay," Nick told him. "Just keeping busy."

 

"Got it!" Clawhouser said. He gestured towards the doors leading to station's offices. "Chief Bogo wanted you to both report to him as soon as you got in. I'm not sure why."

 

"Thanks, Clawhouser," Judy said. She and Nick headed over to Bogo's office.

 

"That you, Hopps?" she heard him call when Judy knocked on his door.

 

"Me and Officer Wilde, Chief," she called back.

 

" _ Hmmph, _ you'd better both come in then." When she pushed the door open and stepped inside, she found the Chief behind his desk, glaring down at an unfamiliar male rabbit wearing a sharp business suit, with grey fur and peculiar black stripes on his cheeks. "Hopps, Wilde, this is Agent Jack Savage. He's with Federal Mammal Investigations."

 

"How do you do?" Nick asked the male bunny, grinning. "Is that pronounced 'Savage' or ' _ Sauvage? _ '"

 

"It's pronounced 'Don't get cute with the Federal agent,' Officer Wilde," Savage answered cooly.  

 

Nick turned to Judy, seemingly unruffled by Savage's response. "Now see, he gets to say 'cute', and you get to say 'cute', but when I do it suddenly I'm the bad guy?"

 

"Stow it, Wilde," Chief Bogo growled. "Agent Savage is here to investigate the matter of the remains that were found in Zootopia harbor on Friday."

 

Judy exchanged a quick look of surprise with Nick, and then asked, "Chief, why is the FMI getting involved in a thirty year old Cold Case?"

 

"That's a question  _ I'd  _ like answered," Bogo replied, glaring down at Agent Savage.

 

"The FMI is getting involved, because it is considered a Federal matter. More than that I'm not obligated to tell you." Savage turned his attention to Judy. "Especially in the presence of a police officer with family ties to a Zootopia mob boss."

 

For the first time since they entered the Chief's office, Nick's hackles rose up. "Hey, Stripeface! If you're implying my partner is dirty…" he started to say.

 

"My name is  _ Agent Savage,  _ and if I thought Officer Hopps was taking Mob money, we would all be having a very different conversation right now, Officer Wilde," the bunny replied, his tone ice cold now. 

 

"Nick, it's okay," Judy said, laying a calming paw on his elbow. Her partner nodded and took a step back away from the FMI agent, blowing out his breath. "Agent Savage," she said, addressing the other bunny, "I'm aware of the… awkwardness… of a ZPD officer having a personal relationship with a major Zootopian crime figure. But Mr. Big has never asked me to do anything illegal on his behalf, and he has occasionally been of assistance during criminal investigations."

 

"Such aiding in the torture of a suspect during the investigation into the Night Howler terrorism case?" Savage asked. "Which, I might add, is why Duke Weaselton is out on the streets instead of in jail, where he could be assisting us in the prosecution of ex-Mayor Bellwether and her associates. Hardly conduct becoming of a police officer."

 

"Technically speaking, she was a civilian when that happened," Nick pointed out. At Savage and Chief Bogo's mutual glare, he added sheepishly, "Shutting up now."

 

"If you two are through attempting to split hairs, I am expecting to receive all due cooperation and  _ no  _ interference from the ZPD," the government bunny said. He stared at Judy. "That cooperation includes prompt reporting of any contacts from known crime figures on matters concerning this case. Is that clear, Officer Hopps?"

 

"Crystal clear, Agent Savage," Judy replied, even as she wondered if he was talking about her conversation with Raymond. How could he even known about it?  _ Does he have Raymond under surveillance? Does he have  _ **_me_ ** _ under surveillance? _ she thought.

 

"I believe my officers understand the situation," Chief Bogo grumbling. "And I hope  _ you _ understand that I will be contacting your superiors, to inform them of my opinion of your handling of this case, Agent."

 

"That's your prerogative, Chief Bogo," Savage replied evenly. He gave the huge Cape Buffalo a nod. "We'll be talking again soon." The FMI agent turned and left the room, not waiting for a reply.

 

"Well that was fun," Nick said into the silence that followed. "Didja catch that 'split hair/hare' joke? I bet he does have a sense of humor hidden under that Mammals in Black suit of his."

 

"Wilde," Chief Bogo rumbled, "I'm  _ not _ happy. Mostly I'm not happy with Agent Savage.  _ Don't  _ make me unhappy with  _ you. _ "

 

"Yessir," Nick replied, his humor fading.

 

"That said, I want to know just why the feds are getting involved in a thirty year old murder case as much as you do. No doubt he's going to question you about it. Make sure you get as many answers from him as he gets from you." 

 

Nick nodded, his expression completely serious now. "Yes, Chief. I'll try."

 

"As for you, Hopps. Has Mr. Big been in contact with you concerning this case yet? If he was involved in the death of the victim, then he won't be happy with a Federal agent looking into it."

 

"I have not been in contact with Mr. Big since the discovery of the victim's remains, Chief," Judy answered truthfully, if not completely honestly.

 

"If that changes, talk to me first, and I'll decide how much informing Savage of it would put you at risk."

 

"Thanks, Chief," Judy replied with a nod.

 

Bogo turned his gaze back to Nick. "How is your mother holding up, Wilde?"

 

"Er, okay, I guess," Nick replied, looking surprised at the question. "I mean, this whole situation has stirred up a lot of memories for her, but she's keeping it together."

 

Bogo nodded. "Before Agent Savage showed up this morning, I was told by Forensics that you and your mother couldn't identify anything else about the victim aside from that tie clip. It looks like we'll have to wait until the DNA test comes back to be sure of a positive ID. I'm sorry that will leave the situation so ambiguous until then."   
  


"That can't be helped, Chief. Um, thank you though," Nick told him.

 

"Whatever else you may think of me, Wilde, I will  _ always  _ have my officers' backs. That goes for you too, Hopps. Understood?"

 

" _ Yes, sir! _ " they replied.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suspect "Stripeface" is a big insult when you're talking to tigers... :)


End file.
